Demonic Fears
by inukagome15
Summary: It all started with the nightmares. Danny didn't think too much of them until an evil shadow started stalking him. What happens when he encounters it?
1. The Demon

**Yes, this is what I was working on earlier on and finished ages ago. I am just now releasing it because it is the beginning of October and hence the "scary month". It's classified as "horror" but I'm not too good at that. In any case, I first started thinking of this after reading _Nylah's_ The House, which is REALLY scary, by the way. You should read it if you have the stomach for it. Enjoy this first chapter. **

**Read and review kindly please. This story is rated "T" for a reason.  
**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't _Danny Phantom_ but a few of the characters in this story are my own.**

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**Chapter 1: The Demon**

* * *

Danny Fenton was running. Running from what? He didn't know. All he knew was that he was running from something. Again.

It was one of those times that made a part of him wish that he could hide behind his parents. But another part of him, the more resilient and stubborn part, was like, "No. You can't. It's too dangerous. Even they can't handle this."

What was "this"?

Danny didn't know. All he knew was that it was dangerous. And hungry.

He pounded through another alley, not wanting to go ghost as that…thing could sense his ghost half.

He flashed back to when it had all started by some innocent nightmares. At first, it had been minor with just some bad dreams about minor ghosts attacking. He always woke up just when the ghosts in question were about to attack. The only weird thing about the experience was that he woke up feeling like he had actually fought the battle instead of lying in bed asleep. It got worse after that. Soon the ghosts he was fighting in his dreams ended up killing innocent people and he could do nothing to help. Then the worst nightmares arrived. His older and evil future self appeared and killed off everyone dear to him once again.

But that was he _thought_. It turned out that those nightmares hadn't even been the cherry. What really took everything into a new perspective was the fact that his sleep was then being haunted by a sinister shadow that killed everyone around in the bloodiest ways possible. Even bloodier than what his older self had done.

He shook his head, trying to clear it from the mental images.

The silence around him pressed down heavily, making him feel like he was being boxed in. But his own breathing sounded terribly loud to him. He was sure that even if his ghost half didn't give him away, his erratic breathing would.

Danny barely spared a glance to inspect his new surroundings. He was now in an old, abandoned factory. The teen pelted up a flight of stairs before turning into a room filled with various machines.

He breathed heavily, trying to find a way out of the predicament he had found himself in. Finding nothing else, he squeezed into a small niche between a machine and the wall. Danny figured he could always turn intangible if things got ugly.

His breathing quieted down as he listened for the monster that was chasing him. Maybe it hadn't noticed where he'd gone.

Danny breathed a mental sigh of relief as that possibility occurred to him. But barely a few seconds passed before he felt something.

An oppressive feeling of darkness was closing in around him. Danny's breathing picked up once again as he realized that _it_ was here.

He heard it next. Alarmed, he pressed himself deeper into the niche as its eerie voice sent chills down his spine.

"Ghost boooyyy," it moaned in a breathy and growly voice. "Come out come out wherever you aarre."

Danny could almost imagine it inspecting room, sending its tendrils of darkness into corners otherwise unreachable before retreating. He hoped fervently it wouldn't discover him.

However, he soon felt something dark and sneaky creep up on him before he could do anything. He felt it squeeze him once before leaving and he knew he'd been found.

"Found yooouuu," the monster hissed. "Why don't you just come out, ghost boy?"

'_Just my luck that I had to be out patrolling,_' Danny thought, keeping his lips pressed shut. '_No one knows I'm here._' His breath caught in his throat as he registered what had just crossed his mind. '_No one knows I'm here._'

"If you won't come out, I'll make you," the shadow growled.

Unwanted images flashed across Danny's mind.

Sam, lying on the ground with her face as pale as death. A knife was in her chest and blood lay splattered on the ground around her body.

Tucker, hanging from the ceiling. His face was twisted into a grimace as the rope that had taken away his life continued to dig into his dark skin.

Jazz, lying some distance away from Sam with half her head blown out. A gun rested in her hand.

Jack's and Maddie's charred remains leaned against a wall. The only way to tell it actually had been them was because of the remnants of their brightly colored jumpsuits. Some blown up ecto-guns were scattered amongst them.

Danny's head began to spin as a result of the gruesome images flashing through his mind. Tears formed and threatened to spill as he saw another image of a mutilated Sam. His breathing became faster and faster as he began to panic.

Danny gritted his teeth and cried out, "Get. Out. Of. My. HEAD!!" His whole body pulsed green as he threw off the tendrils belonging to the shadow that had wrapped around him. A bluish-white ring formed around his waist and split, revealing a black jumpsuit with white gloves, boots, belt, and collar. A DP symbol was displayed on the chest.

Danny panted heavily as he floated upwards from his hiding space. He had not meant to transform but his adrenaline surge from casting off the shadow's influence had wrought it.

"You show yourself finally, ghost boooyyy," the shadow hissed.

"What do you want?" Danny assumed a flee-or-fight pose.

"Yooouuu," the shadow answered.

"What are you?" Danny tried to swallow his nerves but failed miserably. He whispered the next bit. "What do you want with me?"

"Foood," the shadow whispered in a long drawn-out hiss. "What do you think I am, ghost boy?"

Danny's eyes widened and he tried to quiet the tremble in his voice. "A monster."

"Close guesss," the monster—demon—growled. It crept forwards and began to surround the visibly scared half-ghost.

'_It's a demon straight out from hell._' Danny's breathing quickened once more as he saw its tendrils approach him. '_I can't let it catch me._'

His body turned into a bluish see-through form and he melted through the ceiling, leaving a maddened demon in his wake.

'_Run, run, run._'

Danny transformed back so the shadow wouldn't sense his ghostly energies.

'_Run, run, run._'

His heart was threatening to burst out of his chest as he pelted down a staircase.

'_Why did I go out on patrol?_' Danny chanced a glance behind him and sped up when he saw some familiar tendrils sneaking up on him. '_I've never been so scared before in my life._'

"Always runniiiing."

Danny screeched to a halt. His eyes widened as the monster that had been chasing him materialized before him, taking on some semblance of a corporeal form.

The young half-ghost took a step back in horror as the dark figure before him took a step closer to him and grinned. Every one of its teeth was filed to a point and where its eyes should've been were only hollows.

"Why don't you fight?"

"What are you?" Danny asked again in a hoarse voice. He was unable to get his throat to cooperate.

"Deeemon," the thing hissed, confirming Danny's suspicions. It crouched down and held out a clawed hand to the petrified teen.

"Wh-what do y-you want?" Danny stammered.

"Yoouuu." The answer didn't exactly make Danny feel better.

"Wh-why?" He felt stupid. Here he was, staring down a bloodthirsty monster and all he could do was ask questions.

"Your blooood," the demon whispered.

"Well, sorry!" Danny said with a defiance he didn't feel. "That's not gonna happen anytime soon!"

Despite what his instincts were screaming at him not to do, Danny transformed into Danny Phantom. He immediately got a bad feeling as the demon grinned at him.

He didn't know why until he felt a piercing pain in his side. He looked down to see a shadow tendril piercing his jumpsuit, a pool of ectoplasmic blood spilling down from the wound.

Danny gritted his teeth and pulled out it out, hissing in pain as he did so. More ecto-blood hit the floor.

"This…didn't hurt me when I was human," Danny said, placing a hand over the wound.

"Of cooouuurssse," the demon said. "My beauties only hurt ghosts and spiiiritsss. Now I can destroy yooouuuu."

"Great going, Fenton," Danny muttered as more tendrils snuck towards him. "It _wanted _you to transform so it could drink your blood."

"Drink your blood?" The thing sounded amused. "Noooo. What I have in mind for you is much more…intricaaate."

"That does not make me feel better." Danny bent his knees. "I should listen to my instincts more often."

The halfa took a wary step backwards but instantly regretted it as he felt more tendrils sneak around his ankles. Reflexively, he started floating.

"Are you going to fight nooow?" The thing grinned.

Danny took a breath to steady himself. "Ever heard of how bad fighting is?" His friend Sam crossed his mind. "In fact, running away is almost better!" With that said, the ghost boy turned tail and fled.

"_YOU CAN'T ESCAPE ME, GHOST BOY!!_" The monster's harsh cry resounded through the building.

"I am so dead." Danny gulped and poured on the speed, phasing through floor after floor in a mad attempt to get away.

"You can't escape meee." Danny skidded through the air as the shadows before and around him collected and spiraled upwards to form a cloaked figure, its red eyes glinting. Shapes still crawled over the cloak and the edges of it went into the ground and fanned out, tendril waving creepily.

Danny's voice sounded hollow to his ears. "You a shape shifter or something?" His mouth was dry and his breathing ragged. This new shape scared him more than the last.

It chuckled. It was a deep, throaty sound that sent shivers down Danny's spine. "The great Danny Phaaantooom." Its red eyes narrowed. "You're nothing but a pathetic chiiild."

"So?" It was all Danny could get out. Fear continued to constrict his lungs and made it hard to breathe.

"But a child with energyyy." Danny heard something that sounded like cracking. "Lovelyyy."

"Wh-what does m-my energy have t-to do with y-you?" Danny hoped he hadn't sounded stupid. That cracking sound was disturbing him.

"Use your braaiiin." Danny thought he saw teeth. "Deelicioussss energyyy."

"You want to e_at_ me?" Danny said, horrified.

This time Danny really did see teeth. All of them were filed to a point. "You to find out; me to know," it replied silkily.

"I'm not going to let you," Danny said with as much bravado as he could muster.

"You don't have a choooicccce," it hissed.

"You always do," Danny retorted. He realized he had heard/read that phrase before. But where? He pushed that matter out of his head. It wasn't important.

"Not this tiiiime." The tendrils of its cloak started coming out of the ground. Danny couldn't repress a gasp as the concrete was literally ripped apart.

'_That explains the cracking,_' he thought.

"Any last wooordssss?" the demon whispered, the shadowy cloak spreading out like two demonic hands.

Danny's hands flared green, lighting up his surroundings and casting an eerie shadow of himself. "Yeah," he answered. "I'm not going down without a fight."

Immediately, the cloak attacked. The swampy darkness rushed towards the ghost boy, threatening to drown him. Just in time, Danny threw up a brilliant green dome around him and shielded himself from the dark.

The light swallowed the dark up, leaving smoke in its wake. The distraction allowed Danny to retaliate by firing his own rays of ectoplasmic energy. The two beams hit his foe spot on much to Danny's satisfaction. His eyes then widened as a hole formed and his dual attack passed harmlessly through.

"Crud," he muttered, taking to the air. His white gloves still glowed green. "Time to kick it up a notch," he declared, his electric green eyes flaring.

Despite his tough appearance, Danny was terrified. He knew that what he was facing wasn't a normal ghost and the ruthlessness with which it threw its attacks scared him, too. Only two ghosts he had faced had fought like this and luckily, they were both out of commission.

"Feissstyyy," the demon said softly. "You will do veeeryyy weeeell."

Danny blanched and ducked a tendril. "Gross. You're talking about me like I'm an appetizer."

Danny could see teeth again. "No appetiiizeeer. You are the maaaiiin cooourssse."

"And for dessert?" the halfa quipped, his heart thundering in his ears. '_I'm__** so**__ going to get busted for that. Why don't I just shut up now?_'

The red eyes glinted. "Think you're cleveeeer?"

Before Danny could stop himself, he had retorted out of habit. "Why no but if you say so I'll take it!" Danny winced. '_Me and my stupid mouth!_'

Without a word, the cloaked shadow attacked. Its darkness slammed into Danny head on and he barely had time to turn intangible before he slipped through the wall. He flew through several walls and floors before managing to push the approaching darkness away. Danny flipped over backwards and landed, sliding to a halt. His breathing was erratic and he had cuts all over, courtesy of his intangibility not working properly on the demon.

He waited anxiously for several minutes but didn't hear or see anything beyond the ordinary. Just when he thought the thing wasn't coming after him anymore, the whole wall literally exploded. Danny covered his face instinctively while switching to intangibility. The dark cloak of the demon spread outwards, swallowing everything around Danny in darkness. When the ghost boy uncovered his face, he found that he was completely surrounded by the monster. Its hooded form stood before him, red eyes glinting evilly. The ends of its cloak were around both of them, leaving them in a sea of writhing darkness.

"Nowhere to ruuun," it whispered; "nowhere to hiiiide. What are you going to doooo?"

Danny gulped. "Not…run." His voice sounded hoarse as he said it.

"Wiiiise mooove." It didn't move. The only things that were moving were the tendrils of its cloak.

'_It's my only option._' Danny's breath was shallow as he tried to prepare himself for an ugly battle. The only problem was he wasn't sure if he was up to it.

"Read to diiie?" The cloak was moving more erratically.

Danny tried to sound brave. "Not quite. Let's do this, creepy." His hands started flaring green.

"Glaaadly." Now the cloaked form of the demon opened, sending a torrent of darkness towards Danny.

In turn, Danny put his hands together and started forming an attack of his own. The two were just about to collide when something happened.

"AAAARGH!"

Danny watched in amazement as the demon started writhing in obvious pain, stopping just before attacking. Letting his own attack die, he watched as the darkness around him dissipated slowly, withdrawing to the demon.

'_What's going on?_' His question was answered when he saw the sun shining over the buildings of Amity Park and into the ravaged room they were in. The light was eating away at the darkness until there was nothing left.

Danny was left alone in the building, the empty and destroyed windows letting the gorgeous sun in. It was over. But what about the next night? He didn't know if he could last another night with that thing.

What was he going to do?

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**I could've first finished the story at this cliffhanger. But I thought better of it and developed three more chapters. If I remember, I'll post each on a Wednesday. REVIEW please! **


	2. A Short Reprieve

**So...what do you think of my first attempt at horror? It's not that good, I think. Anyway, this is the longest chapter of the whole story. It doesn't really matter if you don't believe in heaven or hell or anything else that's remotely religious. Just roll with it.**

**My sequel to The Return is already three chapters in. I plan on writing five out before posting the first. My crossover story will be done after my _InuYasha_ fic is updated. If you want regular reports I recommend going to my profile. ;)**

**Read and review kindly please.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own _Danny Phantom_.**

**ANONYMOUS REVIEW REPLIES AT THE BOTTOM!**

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**Chapter 2: A Short Reprieve**

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"I am the Box Ghoooost! Fear my carbonated fury!"

"You know, there's probably a quip to go with that but I'm too tired to think of one so I'll just suck you in and be done with it." The familiar Fenton Thermos fired up and the bluish-white vortex trapped the annoying Box Ghost, sucking him into the confines of the containment device. Danny Phantom capped the thermos, looking completely worn out as he did so.

"No witty banter?" Tucker Foley, an African-American and techno geek, stood by his friend as Danny landed next to him. "You must be tired."

"Didn't want to bother." Danny put the thermos back on the strap that was attached to his back and transformed back into Fenton once he had checked out the area.

" 'Carbonated'?" Samantha Manson, a Goth girl who had a secret crush on Danny, smirked. "Does he even know what that means?"

"It sounds like 'cardboard' so he probably just used it for the sound of it," Danny said. "Come on, let's go to school."

"Wow. If you want to go to school that means something's up." Sam fell into stride with her raven-haired friend.

"I just want a bit of normality, you know?"

Both Sam and Tucker shared a look. "No."

Danny sighed. "Never mind."

In a way, having fought the Box Ghost made him question the reality of the previous night. It all seemed like some horrible dream he had probably made up in bed. The only problem was that he still had the evidence to prove he had fought that demon. His ghost form still had the wound in the side that the tendril had given him and he still boasted scratches from his journey through the walls during the end of the fight. It was probably also worth mentioning that he only had an hour's sleep after getting back to bed.

To put it simply, he was mentally and physically tired. He was tired of having the reoccurring nightmares every single night and he was tired of having to fight ghosts every other hour of the day. It was too bad that he couldn't just stop time and be done with it. Well, that was a thought with Clockwork around but he knew the ancient ghost would never go for it. He had trouble enough trying to get him to help with the ecto-acne episode and then the fact that he had completely destroyed the current timeline with the resulting consequences didn't really help. He was lucky that Clockwork had even helped him out of that predicament.

Danny stifled a yawn as they came in sight of Casper High School and privately looked forward to a halfway normal day. It would never completely normal with the ghosts around but at least he didn't have to think about the horrible demon there.

* * *

The bell rang loudly, startling Danny, who had been sleeping in his Algebra class. The fact of the matter alone wasn't strange: he always slept in Algebra. What was strange was that he kept having nightmares while dozing off and had to keep from yelling every time he woke up.

Unbeknownst to Danny, this fact hadn't escaped Sam or Tucker. He also missed the silent agreement between the two that they had to talk to their friend about it. He was acting even jumpier than usual and was even sleepier than he normally was. Something was up and it needed to be addressed.

Both of them tackled Danny about it during lunch.

"Danny," Sam started, "we need to talk."

Danny jerked out of his daze. "About what?"

"About this." Sam gestured to his haggard face. "Something's wrong."

"And you need to tell us," Tucker added. "Seriously, no witty banter this morning? You _always_ give witty banter. It's part of your schedule!"

"I wasn't feeling up to it."

"That's why we need to talk," Sam said. "You're just not acting normal, Danny. You need to tell us why."

Danny sighed, having known that this conversation was coming. "Nothing's wrong," he said flatly. "It's just that I've not been sleeping well." '_That's an understatement._'

"Too many ghosts?" Tucker asked.

Happily, Danny seized on this excuse. "Yeah."

"If you need help, you know that you can just ask us," Sam offered. "We're there for you."

Danny shook his head. "It's fine. You need your sleep, too."

"We've been getting too much," Tucker said. "Besides, it looks like you're having nightmares."

"What gives you that idea?" Danny tried not to seem nervous. Explaining his nightmares and the demon was not what he wanted to go into. If he told them, they would want to help him and he knew that wouldn't work. The demon wouldn't hesitate to kill them and he wasn't sure if he was strong enough to protect them.

"Come on," Sam said impatiently. "You're jumpy, sleepier than normal—"

"That's the ghosts," Danny interrupted.

"—you keep waking up with jerks and try not to scream," Sam continued, ignoring Danny. "Anything else I should bring up?"

"He's not letting us come with him on night patrols anymore," Tucker supplied.

"And that, too," Sam agreed.

Their argument was too sound; he figured he should give a little ground. "All right, fine. I'm having nightmares," Danny admitted.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Sam asked.

"What's to talk about? They're just nightmares, Sam. It's nothing big," Danny said. "Everyone gets them." '_Yeah. Everyone gets nightmares with their best friends and family lying dead before their eyes in the most gruesome ways._'

"Jazz wouldn't say that," Sam argued.

"You're not telling her," Danny said immediately, seeing where this was going. The last thing he needed was for Jazz to go poking around. He knew something bad would happen if he let her interfere.

"Why not?" Sam pushed her salad away and leaned forwards, looking Danny in the eye. "Danny, something is _wrong_. You need help. Please, let us give it. You're _exhausted_. Just look at yourself!"

"I feel fine!" Danny objected, feeling quite the contrary. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this bad. "So what if I'm not sleeping well and having nightmares? Everyone has that!"

"I read that nightmares are your fears shoved in front of your face," Tucker said. "If you're scared of asteroids, you'll probably have nightmares about that happening. You need to face your nightmares, Danny, and get them out of the way. You're already not getting enough sleep."

"You sound like Jazz. And that sounds _way_ too corny."

"It's the truth," Tucker said simply. "And I think it's a scientific fact, too."

"Trust us, Danny," Sam pleaded. "We're your friends. And you really need help."

Danny resisted the urge to lay his head on the table. He was too tired to deal with this right now. "Fine. What do you want me to say? I'm having nightmares about me not being able to protect you guys? I'm having nightmares about ghosts murdering all of you when I can't do anything?"

"Is that the truth?" Tucker prodded.

"Yeah," Danny half-lied. He had left out the fact that it was a demon doing the work and not ghosts.

"If that's the problem, Danny, why didn't you talk to us about it before?" Sam moved as if to take Danny's hand but then seemed to think better of it. Instead, one hand remained on the table and the other was folded under her as she leaned forward again. "You should know we wouldn't let that happen."

"It's different when it's Skulker or the Box Ghost," Danny said, placing his chin in his hands. He was trying to organize his thoughts to form an effective argument. "What if it's a really dangerous ghost? Like Undergrowth? I can't risk that happening again, Sam. All of you nearly _died_. What happens if a ghost of Pariah's caliber gets out? I barely beat that guy before. I might not be able to protect you."

"We can protect ourselves, Danny," Tucker answered. "You should know that."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "Against me?"

Sam opened her mouth as if to reply but then shut it.

Danny laughed rather bitterly. "You know you wouldn't be able to protect yourself against me if I really turned evil."

"You won't," Sam objected.

"But what if I do? Or what if a stronger ghost than me decides to turn up? Like _him_ for instance?" Danny frowned darkly on remembering that particular ghost.

Tucker sighed, seeing that Sam was at a loss for words. "Danny, we get that this…_profession_ we're in is dangerous. Why do you think we're still doing it?"

"You're not aware of the total danger."

"You didn't have to answer that." Tucker also shoved his plate away, which was a surprise considering how much he loved eating. "Look, we _like_ ghost hunting; we're aware of the dangers surrounding it and we still like it. It gives us something to do, too. Besides, we wouldn't be able to just sit around while you risked your life for us and _knowing_ that you're risking your life for us."

Tucker put up his hands. "Come on, Danny; try to put some more faith in us. I know it's not all roses and daisies when it comes to fighting ghosts. If we get injured, it's our own fault, not yours. Don't beat yourself up about it then."

"But _I'm_ the one with the ghost powers," Danny said in a low voice. "You guys are just normal, average humans."

"That sounds insulting when you say it like that," Sam murmured.

Danny ignored her. "If you guys got hurt and I couldn't protect you even with _these_"—he flashed his hand invisible shortly—"I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. I know you guys like ghost hunting but I'm still afraid about what might happen. That's why I get these nightmares."

"So you do agree!" Tucker said triumphantly.

"Only for right now," Danny said. "I still think it sounds corny."

Tucker's face fell. "Well, at least you're admitting it."

The bell rang then, signaling the end of lunch. Danny got up, pushing his chair back as he did so. "That's it, right?"

Sam and Tucker shared a private look.

"For now," Sam said quietly, warning Danny with her purple eyes. "Just don't shut us out completely, Danny."

Inwardly, Danny smiled with relief. It looked like that difficult conversation was over and they might have seen his point of view of them hunting ghosts. To be truthful, he hadn't even thought about the dangers of ghost hunting before this whole fiasco. The business with this demon and his horrible nightmares had awoken him to his friends' delicate predicament when it came to hunting ghosts. He only hoped that the demon wouldn't actually do what it had shown in his dreams.

* * *

"I'm—"

"_Danny_!"

"—home," Danny finished, sighing. It looked like his sister had decided to bug him. About what he didn't know but if she pounced on him like this the instant he came home from school, he figured it must be big.

"Come on!" Jasmine Fenton tugged Danny's arm towards the living room. "You and I need to talk."

"Gee, Jazz, I can't even put my bag away?" Danny pulled his arm away from his big sister and glared, adjusting his backpack as he did so.

Jazz put a finger to her chin. "Well, you're acting normal." She thought for a moment before continuing, "But you look completely exhausted and wiped out so I figure you should just dump your bag in the living room and sit down!" She smiled brightly and finished dragging Danny to the living room before he could protest further.

Without another choice other than flying away and he _really_ didn't want to do that with his parents around—God knows what they were up to—he put his bag by his feet and sat on the couch, folding his arms, and glaring at the ground. Jazz, meanwhile, simply flopped down in the armchair right next to him and folded her legs under her, looking completely at ease.

"You're having nightmares?" Jazz started immediately, looking at her little brother.

Danny switched his glance to the ceiling and rested his head on the back of the couch, groaning mentally. "I assume—no, I _know_ Sam and Tucker told you. Would you please just cut the psychoanalysis and let me be?"

"No." Jazz tapped her forehead. "Your mind is completely unique due to the scope of the problems you handle. Can you imagine how much credit that would give me on my papers?"

Danny just stared at her, not knowing if she was serious or not. He hoped it was the latter. He didn't want to be related to a sister that treated her little brother as a way to get in a good college.

"Ah. Just kidding." Jazz dropped her hand.

Danny relaxed. "I really thought you were serious there for a moment."

"Well, I wasn't kidding about your mind being unique," Jazz said. "I'm worried about you. Sam and Tucker both say you're not as trusting and open as you were before. What's wrong, Danny?"

"Would you leave me alone if I just say that I don't want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Figured." Danny folded his hands behind his head. "I'm just having bad nightmares. Nothing serious about that, is there?"

Jazz seemed to think otherwise. "Keeping everything bottled up isn't healthy, Danny. You're really not talking if your problems are coming out during the night in nightmares. Not getting enough sleep isn't healthy either. You look like you're about to drop dead right now!"

"Gee, thanks. You look like you've seen a ghost."

"No pun intended, of course," Jazz mended. "But you know that being half-ghost doesn't mean you're dead, right? Your DNA just has ectoplasm in it, giving you ghostly powers and a ghost form. Besides, even full-ghosts aren't dead. You know how Mom and Dad always call them 'post-human blobs of consciousness' or something like that."

Danny cocked an eyebrow. "This has to do with my nightmares how?"

"Right. " Jazz cleared her throat. "So, anyway, what are your nightmares about?"

"Didn't Sam and Tucker tell you?" Danny did not want to go through the same ordeal of explaining his problem concerning his friends going ghost hunting again.

"I'd rather hear it from you," Jazz said simply.

"I don't want to go through this again."

"I know you don't, Danny, but please," Jazz coaxed. "I might be able to help."

"How can you help me get over my fear of my friends ghost hunting?!" Once he had said this, Danny immediately clamped his mouth shut. He had not meant to let that slip.

Jazz looked sympathetic. "I understand, Danny. You're scared for Sam and Tucker's well-being. But you have to accept that they'll be all right."

"But will they really?" Danny knew that they wouldn't stand a chance against that demon. "What if something really nasty comes along? Like a demon?"

"Demons can be defeated, Danny," Jazz said.

"By what?"

"Don't you read the Bible or other religious works?" Jazz asked. "I know Mom and Dad are more obsessed about ghosts than religion but that doesn't mean you should be, too."

"I don't like reading," Danny muttered. "Besides, the Bible's _huge_."

Jazz rolled her eyes but accepted her little brother's statement. "In every religion," she continued, "the demons—or the dark—are always beaten back by the light. It's an age-old battle with the whole concept of 'good over evil' or 'light over dark' revolving around it. Don't be scared of the dark; it can't hurt you. Only if you give in to your fear can it hurt you."

'_You'd be surprised,_' Danny thought bitterly. Aloud, "But what if the light isn't around? What then?"

"The light is always around, Danny. Sometimes, you just have to ask."

Danny let that sink in. "OK. Thanks, Jazz."

His big sister smiled. "No problem, little bro. But—I have to ask—how did we get to the subject of light vs. dark?"

Danny smiled nervously. "You answer that."

"And why so curious anyway?" Jazz was getting suspicious—he could tell.

"Just…curious," Danny said weakly.

He was saved from further interrogation by the arrival of Jack Fenton. "Danny! Look at this, son!" He held up something that looked like a mirror with "Fenton" emblazoned on it. "I call it the Fenton Reflector!"

"Uh, that's nice, Dad," Danny said for a lack of better words. "What's it do?"

"It bounces back a ghost's reflection causing it to incapacitate itself!"

"Isn't that for vampires?" Jazz cut in, eyeing the mirror skeptically.

"Nonsense!" Jack boomed. "Try it, Danny!"

Danny panicked. "Uh, I just forgot—I have homework to do. Gotta go!" He dashed away, leaving Jazz to his father. Not sure whether or not the thing actually worked, he wasn't about to stay around and risk it.

Thankfully, he escaped to his room. He _did_ have homework to do. And maybe some thinking about what Jazz had told him. It could be useful.

* * *

**It was sunny, the type of day he always enjoyed while spending it with his friends in the park. And the best part was that it was a weekend, leaving him free to spend the entire day outdoors with Sam and Tucker. **

**The two were laughing at something Tucker had done; Sam was looking beautiful in a way that only she could. Shaking her head in evident amusement, she caught Danny's eye and grinned. The ghost boy blushed involuntarily—when was it ever voluntarily?—and looked away. He hadn't meant to be staring at her. Translation: He hadn't meant to be **_**caught**_** staring at her.**

**He was just about to reach for a drum roll when the dream changed. The clear day suddenly transformed into a stormy, overcast sky and the wind began howling. Sam and Tucker were still laughing away and he seemed to be the only one noticing the rapid change. Before he could say anything else, a sudden flash of green averted his attention and made his breath catch in his throat.**

**It was **_**him.**_** The one ghost he had hoped never to see again was back. He thought that he had taken care of him but it looked like he hadn't. The ghost floated there, grinning malevolently, knowing that Danny was too paralyzed to do anything else but think over the fact that **_**he**_** was there.**

**Danny had no time to react as Phantom dashed forward as fast as lightning and grabbed Tucker, dangling him in the air by the scruff of his shirt. The boy's eyes were wide with panic now, begging Danny to save him. But Danny couldn't.**

**He saw Phantom mouth the words "**_**You know it's you doing this**_**" before he snapped Tucker's neck, and tossed him away carelessly as if his corpse were nothing.**

**Sam's mouth was open in a silent scream and Danny was just about to reach out for her when Phantom got there, dangling her the same way he had Tucker. Danny wanted to yell to him to let her drop but no words came. It was agony for him to see Sam beg him silently with her eyes; to see her dangle helplessly from Phantom's gloved hands; and to watch Phantom smirk as he enjoyed the pain he was causing Danny.**

**"**_**We can do this all day,**_**" were the words he caught Phantom mouthing as he shook Sam. "**_**I'm going to make you suffer…and then kill you myself.**_**"**

**Danny wanted to go ghost and save Sam but the rings just wouldn't appear. It was all he could do to spring to his feet. But before he could even reach Phantom's location in the air, the ghost had snapped Sam's neck and was still smirking.**

**"**_**Noooo**_**!" Danny cried—or he would've if he could.**

**"**_**Enjoy**_**," Phantom mouthed. And he threw Sam's body at him. Danny was about to catch her when the dream changed yet again.**

**He was standing in endless darkness. He couldn't see anything but he knew something horrible was lurking just beyond his sight. Then, he **_**saw**_**. Helpless, he saw what was going on only a few feet before him and he could nothing. He was merely a bystander.**

**A dark shadow was slowly strangling Jazz, creeping into her nose and mouth, making it so that she couldn't breathe. He saw her eyes roll into the back of her head and watched in horror as her lifeless body dropped to the ground, the dark retreating.**

**The scene changed again.**

**Now he was watching his parents fix an ecto-gun. It seemed that only he was aware of a shadow creeping into the device while they weren't looking. He couldn't do anything as he saw the muzzle of the defective ecto-gun glow red and then the whole body. He could only watch in agony as the weapon exploded, burning his parents' bodies and he knew he would've seen their remains skidding on the floor if the whole lab hadn't exploded as well.**

**He didn't want to watch anymore. It was getting too painful; the impact of what he was seeing cut him to the core. But before he could close his eyes, he was watching Tucker.**

**His best friend was standing on the edge of a roof, staring straight ahead. But then it was like he was staring at Danny, cutting him straight to the heart. His gaze was accusing. It was like he was saying, "**_**It's your fault, Danny.**_**" The teen in question had no time to ask what he was talking about before Tucker threw himself off the building, falling down, down, and down. Danny watched as his friend hit the street, watched as the pedestrians ran away screaming or stood watching in mute horror, watched as the blood slowly pooled around what remained of Tucker Foley. And beyond it all, he saw a dark shadow just hovering around him.**

**He was feeling distinctly sick when the scene changed yet again. This time showing Sam. His gorgeous friend was held in the clutches of the same shadow he had seen Jazz in. But this time, the shadow was merely holding her, keeping her alive for a slow and tortuous death it seemed. Her lilac eyes were begging him, begging him to do the one thing he could not seem to do. And that was to save her.**

**"**_**Why? Why, Danny?**_**" That's what her eyes seemed to be telling him. "**_**It's your fault.**_**" **

**Then the shadow suddenly squeezed her, squeezing the very life out of her body as Danny watched in terror. Her mouth was slowly being stained crimson, and her eyes were looking dangerously red as well. But still Danny couldn't tear his eyes away of his other best friend being murdered before his very eyes. Then, the shadow stopped, dropping Sam's body on the floor and leaving her to lie there, her blank eyes unseeing and her mouth opened in what could have been her last gasp.**

**"Do you like this?" he heard something whispering in his ear. "This is what I could do." Something started squeezing Danny. "Do you like this?"**

**Danny squeezed his eyes shut, trying to blot everything out of his mind. There was a long, unending scream in his ears that just wouldn't seem to stop. He caught one more flash of Sam dying before his eyes and—**

He woke up panting and sweating; Danny shot up in bed, trembling with the effort of keeping his shocked cry quiet. He buried his face in his hands momentarily before collapsing back onto his pillows. It was only then as his heartbeat and breathing evened out that he realized it wasn't only the nightmare that had woken him; there was something else.

With growing dread, he recognized the oppressive darkness and slipped out of bed, trying to find the source. Danny went to the window, opened it, and poked his head out, not seeing anything out of the ordinary. But he could still feel _it_.

Quietly, he pulled on his clothes and transformed. Invisible, he phased through the floor and went down to the lab, drawn by something that he couldn't exactly put his finger on. Mindlessly, he let his eyes rove over the various inventions scattered about until they stopped to rest on one particular one. It was the Fenton Reflector.

He considered it for a moment and, shrugging, figured it couldn't really hurt to take the thing. The only problem was that it was incredibly unwieldy…

He soon solved the problem by pulling it on the strap he normally had the thermos on. The mirror had two straps on the back probably made for that convenience. But he didn't think for once that his parents had made it for _his_ use.

With that task done, Danny phased out into the street and floated there, just waiting. The presence was significantly stronger here and he could swear that he saw tendrils moving in the shadows.

It was too dangerous for his family if he stayed here. His decision made, Danny Phantom sped off, stalked by a hungry demon.

It was time for another terror-filled night.

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**Thus ends the second chapter. As for Tucker's explanation on nightmares, I do think that it's a scientific fact since I've read it somewhere. And the asteroid nightmares were mine for a time until I grew fed up with them. Another note, put yourself in Danny's shoes if you don't think he acted in character in this chapter. Would YOU put your friends in danger if you couldn't face a demon so much more powerful than yourself? And if you're a half-ghost and your friends are mere mortals? I certainly wouldn't. And I'd try to keep it secret, too, to prevent them from worrying about the demon.  
**

**Danny's dream is by far the darkest thing I've ever written. Even my angst one-shot doesn't really compare. Next update Wednesday. REVIEW PLEASE!  
**

**Thanks to _TexasDreamer01, hawkflyer667, XxDragon PhantomxX_ and _2lazy2login_ for reviewing!**

_**2lazy2login:**_ I'm glad you think so. That's why it's "horror". Danny's loved ones were shown as dead in his nightmares because the demon knows that's what he fears. I'm sorry for torturing him so but I think it's even worse this chapter. I do feel happy, though, that you treat this almost as a real episode. I hope you continue to enjoy this fic.


	3. The Angel

**I remembered to update. XD This one, as you can see, has strongly to do with heaven and hell. In fact, this whole fic revolves around it in case you didn't already notice. (The _demon_ was a dead giveaway.)**

**Read and review kindly please.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own _Danny Phantom_.**

**REVIEW REPLY TO ANONYMOUS REVIEWS AT THE BOTTOM.**

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**Chapter 3: The Angel**

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The first thing Danny did was head for an abandoned and rundown area of Amity Park. He wasn't going to have observers if he could help it.

Eerily enough, he ended up at the same factory as before. Aware of the approaching demon, Danny phased into the building and stopped, turning to face his enemy. The first thing he noticed was the darkening of the walls. Then dark tendrils phased through, followed by a massive darkness. It pooled before rising to become the same figure as last night.

"Nice to meet you again," Danny said. "Had a nice day?"

"Ghooost boooy," it hissed. "Such insssooolenccce."

"I get that a lot," he said airily.

"Are you not afraaaid?"

"Yeah," Danny said honestly.

"And yet you face meee." Danny saw sharp teeth beneath the hood.

"What choice do I have?" Danny replied coldly.

"You said everyone has choicccesss."

"We do," Danny said. "I chose the one that wouldn't place my loved ones in danger."

"And you choose to fight as a ghooost?" it asked, grinning maliciously.

Danny's breath hitched in his throat as he remembered what had happened last time. But his mind was made up.

"I do," he said firmly.

Its grin widened. "Are you suuure?"

Danny planted his feet, his hand flaring with green light. "Does this answer your question?"

The demon didn't reply. Instead, it spread its cloak and swept towards Danny. The half-ghost put up a small but brilliant ecto-dome that instantly destroyed the shadows. With a short breathing reprieve, Danny switched to offensive, firing off ghost rays into the demon's cloak. Wherever it made contact, the darkness shriveled up and disappeared. Unfortunately, this did not hinder the demon as it slowly but surely made its way to Danny's feet.

At the last second, just before it grabbed him, Danny leapt into the air, still firing ghost rays. He stopped for a quick moment but even that was to build up an enormous ecto-ball. When it finished powering up, Danny threw it into the midst of the oncoming cloak, creating a sizeable crater where the floor was visible.

"Gotcha!" Danny cried triumphantly. The hole sealed up. "Or maybe not."

"You have to try harder than that, ghost boooy," the demon hissed from somewhere in the cloak. Its hooded figure had disappeared with the attack. Danny had no time to figure out where the main head was since the darkness came up like a tsunami.

"I guess I will then!" Eyes flaring with supernatural light, Danny's whole body glowed green. Then the light receded to his chest, disappearing entirely before being released in an enormous soundless explosion of green energy.

The huge attack instantly evaporated most of the tsunami. When the light faded, a panting Danny Phantom was floating there, his eyes fading to their normal electric green.

'_Is it over?_' He couldn't see anything of the demon. '_Maybe it is._'

Just as he thought this, something exploded from the ground and crashed into him, sending him flying headlong into the wall behind him. He hit it hard and slid down to the floor, stars spinning in his vision.

Immediately afterwards without even a second to clear his spinning vision, Danny felt something rake his chest and cried out, the shock clearing his vision. One hand reached for his chest while the other raised a shield.

He felt something wet and slightly cold seeping through the fabric of his gloves. Danny looked down to see ectoplasm coating his fingers and looked at his chest to see five claw marks from his right side stretch up to his left shoulder. Glancing up in time to see a familiar hooded finger lick its green fingers, Danny shuddered.

"Deliciousss," it whispered.

Danny felt slightly sick. "You're sick."

"Not quiiite. _You're_ siiick."

"Scratched maybe but not sick," he snapped. Danny got to his feet, letting his shield drop as he did so.

The monster grinned. "Of cooourssse."

Danny let his fists glow to signal to the demon that he was ready to fight if need be. But on the inside, he was thinking furiously.

'_How am I supposed to beat this? No matter what I throw at it, it instantly bounces back_.' Danny calmed his breathing. '_Ice? Well, it's worth a shot._'

As soon as he had reached this decision, the demon attacked. Danny took one step backwards, substituting his ecto powers for his cryogenic powers. His hands and eyes flared blue as the temperature in the room dropped several degrees.

The demon hesitated slightly in its approach, giving Danny all the incentive he needed. He put both hands together and formed a powerful ice blast, instantly freezing the demon from the tip to the finish, which was in the ground. Because of his target, the ice spread across the ground, freezing even the concrete. When he finished, he let his hands drop and examined his work.

'_Do I shoot a ghost ray at it or not?_' he wondered dubiously as he inspected the wave of ice that was the demon. '_If I do, what happens? Will it just break apart and regenerate?_'

He was saved from debating this when the ice grew black. Danny's eyes widened as he saw a spider web of cracks frame it. The halfa had just enough time to turn intangible when his ice sculpture exploded, sending ice flying everywhere.

His breath hitched as he saw the towering figure of the hooded demon.

"Niiiccce tryyy," it hissed angrily. Danny could see red eyes glaring at him. "Care to try agaaain?"

"Crud," he breathed, shooting backwards to dodge daggers of darkness. '_Ice powers obviously don't work. What about my Ghostly Wail?_' He remembered previous uses of this latter power. '_The only time it didn't work was in Ancient Egypt against that sphinx. There's a chance it might not work here, too._' Danny ducked a spear of darkness and retaliated by shooting a bright ecto-beam that fried the center of the demon. '_But what do I have to lose?_'

His subconscious instantly answered that question. '_Your life_.'

Danny was resolved in his decision. '_It's now or never._'

He took a deep breath much to the bemusement of the demon, who stopped for a moment to ponder this abnormality. Its question was answered in the next second.

Danny let loose with an earth shattering Ghostly Wail, his most powerful attack. Green sonic waves tore apart the concrete at their feet and rocked the building to its very core, sending piles of concrete to the ground around the two opponents. A dreadful moaning filled the air that could easily burst eardrums.

The Ghostly Wail easily pushed back the demon, who struggled to approach the source. The sonic waves themselves tore apart little pieces of the blackness that made up its body.

This lasted a full minute as Danny kept pushing and tearing apart the demon. When he finally stopped, his breathing was ragged and he keeled over to place both hands on his knees. The ghost boy looked up next, still breathing heavily, to observe his work. What he saw completely broke down any hope he had left of winning the battle.

'_Aw great_.' He didn't waste any breath on those two words. '_Even that didn't work?_'

"Niccce tryyy, ghost boooy," the demon hissed again, regenerating its lost pieces. "But you seem to haaave…run out of gaaasss."

The phrase sounded queer coming from the mouth of a supernatural demon and Danny had to blink twice to be sure he hadn't heard wrong. After all, even if he was the one using the Ghostly Wail, it still caused a ringing in his ears that didn't go away for a few minutes.

But he had to agree with the demon. The lack of sleep over the last few nights due to the nightmares, the ghost fighting during the day, doing physical activity when he should've been lying in bed, and fighting the demon now had given him a near empty tank to draw on when he used the Ghostly Wail. Now, after the use, he had no energy left at all to do much more than fire a few measly ghost rays that weren't going to do anything besides superficial damage.

Therefore, it all seemed very hopeless as the demon reared up for another strike. Danny could do nothing else but try to dodge to the side as the wave struck him again. The darkness gave him a glancing blow on his shoulder that knocked him to the rubble-strewn ground. It was only when he landed on his elbow that he realized his shoulder was drenched in ectoplasm: the demon had gouged a deep scratch.

But on a more positive note, when he landed on his side something dug into his shoulder blades. That's when he realized he had taken the Fenton Reflector with him before leaving to take on the demon. He remembered what Jazz had said about mirrors incapacitating vampires after Jack had explained its function.

'_Well, it's not a vampire but it's definitely a monster._' Danny grabbed the strap with his left arm, wincing as his shoulder throbbed. He pulled it over his head, noting that the deep gouge was already halfway healed. '_And if what Dad says is true, and if it's similar to a ghost, its own reflection should do the job for me._'

Danny quickly flipped the mirror around while the demon was retreating for another attack. The whole thing had taken under a minute. Biting his lip and praying that this would work, he pointed the mirror right at the demon just as another thought registered:

'_Will the Fenton logo block the effect?_'

He saw the demon hesitate, momentarily confused as to why the ghost boy was pointing a mirror at it. He saw the back of the mirror glow green for a second and his hopes heightened that it would work. Then, the light just died, leaving the mirror dark and cold in his grasp.

'_I thought it was supposed to work!_'

"I'm not a vampire, ghooost boooy," the demon sneered. "But thank you for the shhhiny looook."

A horrible face materialized before the frozen halfa. It was grinning, revealing razor sharp teeth eerily similar to a shark's. Its eyes were sunken pits in its face and its whole skin was crawling with what seemed to be millions of tiny insects.

The effect did something to Danny that shocked even him. But that shock was drowned out by mind numbing fear. Yes, he had been afraid before but it was nothing compared to what was threatening to drown him now. He was so scared that all his thought processes were clouded. So scared that he forgot to breathe. So scared that he couldn't even remember what he was there for.

'_Oh God,_' Danny thought. '_I'm really gonna die here._'

Then: '_Don't be afraid, Danny!_'

But he instantly forgot that smaller voice, which was lost to the fear roaring in his ears. But it nagged at him again and he attempted to listen to it once more.

'_Don't be afraid!_'

'_W—what?_' He tried to hang on to that voice. It sounded familiar.

'_Don't. Be. Afraid!!_'

Then, with a flash, he remembered what Jazz had told him. "_Don't be scared of the dark; it can't hurt you. Only if you give in to your fear can it hurt you._"

'_But I've been hurt before. That doesn't make any sense_.' Even as he thought this, earlier memories were being dredged up despite the fear he was feeling. He remembered his earlier encounter. He had been afraid then, hadn't he? Even though his mind had been thinking then, drowning out the emotion, he _had_ been scared. And he had been hurt.

Now, even as the face was drawing back into the cloak and hundreds of hands with sharp claws were threatening to attack him, hope rose within him, drowning out the fear. Jazz's voice, always reasonable and firm even in danger, had calmed him. And with her earlier statement fresh in his mind, Danny blotted out the fear and took a deep breath, clearing it out altogether.

As he did this, the demon hissed, "It's been fuuun, ghooost boooy. But say goodbye, Danny Phaaantooom."

"I'm not afraid," he said quietly, so quietly that the demon couldn't hear him. Then, louder: "I'm not afraid."

"Whaaat?" The demon stopped.

"I said that I'm not afraid," Danny repeated, getting to his knees.

"How cuuute," it sneered. "But even if I can't huuurt youuu like thaaat, I can still eeeat youuu."

Danny's eyebrows raised in disbelief and fear once again threatened to overwhelm. But a small voice in the back of his head told him that the demon had probably said that on purpose to make him afraid, so that it _could_ hurt him. However, even with that voice giving him that reason, he couldn't blot out _this_ instinctive fear.

'_Even if I do decide I'm not afraid_,' he realized, '_what's to say it won't __**make **__me afraid again? Then I __**will**__ die. No matter what I do._' Fear and hopelessness swept over him again.

Teeth appeared in the middle of the demon. "Figured it ooout yeeet?"

'_The light, Danny, the LIGHT!_'

It startled him, the clearness with how he heard the inner voice. '_The what?_'

'_The light! Remember the light, Danny! Don't forget!_'

With another jolt, he recalled something else. "_The light is always around, Danny. Sometimes, you just have to ask._"

'_I have to ask? And if the light isn't around?_'

The same phrase echoed in his head again.

His attention was drawn back to his perilous situation. The mindless fear still numbed him and he was running with almost no energy. Not to mention the huge black demon threatening to gobble him up like a turkey.

'_It's worth a shot anyway. It better work better than that Ghostly Wail._' Danny closed his eyes, knowing that it seemed like he had given up to the demon. '_Please. I'm asking…well, I'm not sure __**what**__ I'm asking for but I'm asking for help. I'm asking for…the light. The light._' The phrase resounded in his head. '_I'm asking for help from the light. Please, vanquish this demon!_' He sounded rather foolish as he prayed for this but he also knew that his last hope hinged on this prayer.

As he finished his prayer, he opened his eyes, expecting to see the demon gone but was shocked to see that same awful face only a foot away from his own. His breath came out in a _whoosh_ as he registered the fact that the light wasn't going to help him. He was on his own.

He could smell the foul breath of the demon. He could feel the slithering tendrils of darkness creep up his arms and could see its grinning face as it enjoyed the fear trickling out of Danny's body.

'_Goodbye, Jazz. Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad_.' He started his farewells. '_I'll miss you guys. And Tucker. …Sam. Why haven't I ever seen this before?_' His heart nearly broke at the thought that he wouldn't see Sam again. '_She's not __**just**__ a friend. She's…something more. But I won't ever be able to find out if she feels the same way for me. It's…over._'

Danny closed his eyes, resolved. He fully expected to feel the demon's mouth swallow him whole but to his surprise, it never came. Suddenly, a blinding flash pierced his eyelids and made him bow his head to avoid it burning his eyes. He managed to force his eyes opened; his jaw dropped at the sight before him.

The demon was nowhere near him. In fact, it was being eaten away by the blinding white light all around the two of them. It was shrieking in pain and anguish as its body burned under the light. The halfa fancied he could see a tall winged figure floating above the two of them, radiating that same light which had saved him from certain death.

"No way," he breathed, awed at the spectacle laid out in front of him.

In another minute the demon was gone. Danny's breathing was heavy as his tired mind registered this fact. Then the impact of it sunk in. He was no longer going to have to fear the nightmares. He wouldn't even have to fight the demon like he had tonight. And as he ran through these thoughts, he was aware of a person standing right before him, radiating light all around him still.

Danny looked up, half-expecting to be blinded again. What he saw was a pair of white wings spanning five feet each and a white robed figure that was gazing down at him.

'_An angel?_'

"Daniel Fenton." He heard his name being spoken by clear bells. He couldn't tell if it was female or male. "Or Danny Phantom."

He got the feeling he was supposed to answer but he couldn't quite find the words. "Y—yeah?"

"The demon will no longer trouble you," the vision assured him.

With this said, Danny's tongue became loose at last. "Who _are _you?"

"I am the light," the figure said. "Or an angel."

"Then…why didn't you stop that thing before?"

"You didn't ask," the angel said in its clear bell-like tones. "We can only interfere if asked, young Daniel."

Danny took a breath. "Was that really a demon?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"You are a half-ghost, a unique creature not seen often in this world," the angel answered. "For the demons of the underworld, such a prize is revered."

"I…think I understand," Danny said hesitantly. "But still…why me? Why was _I_ picked to be the half-ghost? Why do there even need to be half-ghosts?" As he said this, he thought of Vlad, bitter and alone in his evil ways, lusting after a woman that would never be his.

"You have been blessed," the angel said. Danny thought he felt a feather light touch on his head. "Use your powers well, Danny Phantom, as you have so far. The light…is always around."

Then, as suddenly as the angel had appeared and the light had vanquished the demon, both were gone. Danny was left scrambling in his thoughts for one moment before he realized that his strength had been returned. Then, with an uplift of his heart, he noticed that the sun was rising.

He had lived through another night when he thought he wouldn't survive the battle with the demon. And he couldn't have done it without the wise words of his older sister.

Danny got to his feet, feeling better than he had in days. He continued to watch the sun rise, feeling peaceful.

It was a new day.

* * *

**That's the end of the demon arc. There's only one more chapter to go after this one. And that's like the epilogue or something.**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**Thanks to _still2lazy2login, Garnet Sky, _and _TexasDreamer01_ for reviewing!**

**_still2lazy2login:_** It's certainly true that demons would have trouble entering a church. And as you can see, Danny remembered the power of his ecto-blasts against dark shadows--or demons. I'm glad you're enjoying this fic, though. I'm not generally a fan of horror either but yet I wrote this. Isn't that funny?


	4. A New Day

**I DO apologize. I'm well aware that I was supposed to get this out yesterday. Unfortunately my school got in the way and then I had my swimming so I completely forgot. SORRY! In any case, this is the last chapter of Demonic Fears. Thanks for sticking with me throughout this story.**

**READ AND REVIEW KINDLY, PLEASE!  
**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own _Danny Phantom_. I added the line breaks thanks to recent review by _Nylah_, who told me that the scene change was a bit too abrupt. I'm such an idiot!**

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**Chapter 4: A New Day**

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**Jazz yawned. "Good morning, Danny. How'd you—"

"Morning, Jazz!" Danny grinned as he bounded into the kitchen. "How'd _you_ sleep?"

Jazz blinked at the difference in her little brother. "Danny?"

"You look tired so I'm guessing you didn't sleep well at all," Danny continued cheerfully, pouring himself a bowl of cereal.

"Uh, I was up." Jazz shook her head, comparing the new Danny to the one she had seen yesterday. "Worrying about you."

Danny stopped in the action of pouring milk into his cereal. "Really?" he asked softly.

"Yeah." Jazz smiled tiredly. "You haven't been sleeping well at all lately--getting nightmares, right? Normally that means you're repressing things that shouldn't be repressed. But not only that, you weren't telling us what's wrong. I _did_ worry about you. Sam and Tucker, too."

Danny rolled his eyes. Even when she was expressing her concern over her half-ghost brother she continued to act the psychologist. Still… "Thanks, Jazz." He sat down at the kitchen table. "But I really am fine. I slept awesome last night." Actually, he hadn't slept at all. The only time he had slept it had been shrouded with nightmares. But since the angel had saved him, he had felt completely rejuvenated, equal to a full night's sleep.

"Is that so?" Jazz said. "Good for you then. I spent the whole night worrying about you for nothing then!"

"Maybe so." Danny finished the last of his breakfast in record time and phased through his chair, spinning around to rinse his bowl out and place it in the dishwasher.

"Danny!" Jazz hissed. "What about Mom and Dad?"

Danny cocked an eyebrow. "I'd hear them, Jazz. They're kinda loud if you haven't noticed."

"Right," Jazz muttered, leaning back into her chair, stretching. She yawned again.

"You going to school like that?"

Jazz opened her eyes to glare at her little brother. "What do you think? Just because I don't get a good night's sleep doesn't mean I skip school!"

Danny laughed. "Just kidding."

Again, Jazz found herself staring at Danny. He had changed so much over the course of one night. Before, he had seemed so tired and hopeless almost. What had happened to give him such a complete personality change?

She decided to ask. "Danny?"

"Yeah?" Danny poked his head through the kitchen doorway.

"Are you every going to tell me what exactly happened?"

Danny looked thoughtful for a moment. Then, he put up a finger, disappeared for a moment, and reappeared holding his schoolbag.

"Well?" Jazz prompted.

He grinned. "Maybe."

Jazz rolled her eyes upward. "You're never gonna tell me, are you?"

"I said 'maybe'," Danny repeated. "I might or I might not. Depends on what I think you should know…about my nightmares," he added.

"Riiight," Jazz said suspiciously. "There's nothing more to this than you told me, right, little brother?"

"Yep!" Danny lied cheerfully.

"_Ab_solutely nothing?"

Danny was saved from having to answer this by a loud, big, and suited man in orange that was yelling at the top of his lungs.

"DANNY!" Jack shouted, clapping his son on the back. Danny stumbled forward slightly but regained his balance. "What's this about the Fenton Reflector being in your room, son?"

Danny noted Jazz's suspicious look and tried to scramble for an excuse. He was glad he had been saved from Jazz's interrogation but couldn't it have been done in a _safer_ and _nicer_ way? "Uh…"

"You're not hunting ghosts, are you?" Jack asked.

"W—what? No!" Danny tried to make up an adequate excuse. "I, uh, had it in my room because, er, I was trying to get the Fenton logo off of it!"

Jack looked confused. "Why would you do that?"

"I thought it would make the Reflector less effective," Danny said truthfully.

Jack laughed. "Oh, good one, Danny!" He stopped laughing and grinned. "But don't worry. Your mother and I are sure the invention works, with or without the logo!"

"Have you actually tested it?" Jazz asked skeptically.

"Well, uh, not exactly." Jack scratched his neck nervously. "We can never seem to catch a ghost you see…"

In an effort to cheer his dad up, Danny changed the subject."Are you guys making another new invention?" Danny tried not to sound too nervous.

"Nope!" Jack answered at the top of his lungs. "But I _am_ putting together a new Fenton Bazooka!"

"Is that so?" Danny was interested. "What's the new one supposed to do?"

"Well, your mother and I agreed on the fact that the ghosts kept escaping from the Ghost Zone so we needed to figure out a way to stop them from coming back!"

Danny nodded, having this trouble himself but not liking where this conversation was taking them. Jazz looked both interested and mortified.

"Especially that dratted Danny Phantom!" Jack continued, banging his hand on the table and making everything on it jump about a foot in the air. "Anyway, this new and improved Fenton Bazooka doesn't send ghosts to the Ghost Zone anymore!"

"Really?" Danny said weakly. "Where does it send them?"

"It sends them to a containment field in nowhere!"

Danny and Jazz traded looks, horrified expressions frozen on both of their faces. Neither of them liked what it stood for.

"And, uh, what do you do when they're in this containment field?" Jazz asked, trying to keep the conversation alive for her brother's sake.

Jack seemed only too happy to indulge. "Your mother and I have the resources to open this containment field, granting us access to any ghost in it! After that, we can dissect and study it!" He sounded immensely proud of this fact. "And if we catch Danny Phantom in it, it's all for the better since he can't escape!"

Danny made a mental note to destroy the new Fenton Bazooka as soon as it was made. Never mind his own safety; it seemed immoral for him to stand by and allow his parents to dissect other ghosts that he was familiar with. He only hoped it wasn't going to be made from the only Bazooka they have.

"Uh, Dad?" Danny tried to sound interested and not as if he was plotting to destroy the new Fenton Bazooka the instant it was finished. "You're not making this from the other Fenton Bazooka by any chance, are you?"

"Of course we are, Danny!" Jack beamed. "What's the use of the old and outdated model then?"

Never mind scrapping the new weapon. He'd better scavenge the first one before it was damaged beyond repair. And from the look on Jazz's face, she was thinking the same thing.

"You haven't started yet, have you?" Jazz queried, sounding as if she was hoping they hadn't.

"We're starting the models!" Jack said proudly.

"You haven't built anything?" Danny asked.

"Nope!" Jack then looked puzzled. "Why?" His eyes then narrowed. "And why does your name sound eerily familiar to that ghost kid's?"

'_Yipe!_' Danny gulped and hastily scrambled for an excuse. "It's just…coincidence?"

Jazz jumped to his rescue. "Yeah, Dad! I mean, haven't you ever heard of the rock star that sounds_ exactly_ like my name? And she rocks!"

Danny had no doubt that there was no rock star that went by a name that sounded like Jazz. Meanwhile, he had to get out of here fast before Jack asked him more questions on why his name sounded close to Danny Phantom. He was saved by the arrival of his mother, who had more papers on the new Fenton Bazooka.

'_And I'm gonna save the original before they get too far,_' he decided, sneaking out of the kitchen. '_That one works better than the new one will anyway. Never mind a containment field—they're gonna dissect the ghosts they catch!_'

* * *

"Prepare to have your pelt rest at the foot of my bed, whelp!" The Ghost Zone's "greatest hunter", Skulker, was facing Danny Phantom in a one on one battle.

Danny raised an eyebrow, merely turning intangible as several missiles shot his way. "Weren't you just saying that I'll be hanging on your wall?" He sighed. "Make up your mind, O Ghost Zone's greatest hunter!" His voice had taken on a note of condescension at the title.

"I _am_ the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter!" Skulker snapped.

"Really? Then why am I not hanging on your wall yet? Or lying at the foot of your bed?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw both Sam and Tucker creep around behind Skulker, Sam with a thermos in her hands. He had a thermos himself strapped to his back but wasn't using it at the moment, instead insulting Skulker. He split his body in half at the belt when Skulker fired another ecto-missile and reformed, turning invisible as he did so.

"Show yourself, whelp!" Skulker demanded, shooting in the empty space where Danny had been. All he did was create a huge hole in a building and send people scrambling for cover.

Danny's disembodied voice appeared out of thin air next to Skulker. "Or maybe you need video games. I know several good ones that can help you with your gun obsession…"

Skulker scowled and whirled around, only to be met with the Fenton Thermos's beam. He was sucked in a moment later, completely stupefied.

"Hey! Nice job!" Danny transformed back behind a car and walked out as raven-haired Fenton, stopping by his friends' sides. "So how long did it take this time?"

"About ten minutes give or take," Tucker answered, glancing at his watch. He eyed Danny weirdly. "You're looking a lot better today."

"I _feel_ better!" Danny said cheerfully, hoisting his backpack. Then he remembered something else. "What time is it?"

"It's…seven twenty-five." Tucker's eyes widened as he got where Danny was heading. "Oh no!"

"We're gonna be late!" Danny took both of their hands and transformed once making sure that no one was around. He took off in the air, turning invisible as he did so to make sure that no one would raise the alarm that Phantom was kidnapping innocent civilians.

Two minutes later, a windswept Sam and Tucker appeared out of nowhere, followed soon thereafter by a white-haired teen that flashed back to the familiar figure of Danny Fenton.

"You look a _lot_ more cheerful," Sam observed, inspecting Danny's gleeful face. She straightened her hair out as she did.

"My beret!" Tucker cried, making sure it was still on his head.

"Like I said, I feel better, too," Danny repeated, grinning. "Now come on!"

"Are you going to tell us why you were acting so morose a few days ago?" Both teens refused to budge, looking at their half-ghost friend.

Danny hesitated a moment before shaking his head. "Not now. I might tell you or I might not."

Sam opened her mouth to object but Danny cut her off. "Please, Sam?" When Sam shut her mouth and looked resigned, he smiled and continued, "Now come on before Lancer gives us detention for being late. Again."

As his friends made their way up to the school, Danny hung back a bit, looking up at the blue sky and favoring the feeling of simply being alive. It was, after all, a new day.

And as he also climbed up the steps, he fancied he heard an angelic voice. "_You have been blessed._"

* * *

**So...what'd you think? I put some humor in this last chapter in case you didn't notice. And who here caught the reference to Shinigami Phantom? Hint: Danny's talking to Skulker.**

**All in all, what did you think about Demonic Fears? Be honest, please! REVIEW KINDLY, PLEASE!**

**Thanks to _xwickedxspiritx_, _TexasDreamer01_, and _Nylah_ for reviewing that last chapter!**

**Stats: **_Chapters:_ 4; _Reviews: _14; _Hits: _473; _Favs:_ 2; _Alerts:_ 4; _Pages: _31; _Word Count (excluding author's notes):_ 11,760.


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